Afterwards

We are home. (Well, we've been home for a week now...) The laundry is done and we're re-adjusting to days that are NOT spent riding in a bus! Back to real life. It's funny, though, how during tour it seems like real life *is* tour! We did 12 concerts in 14 days. We drove more than 4000 miles. The air conditioning only went out when it was really hot. :) We met some great people and saw some magnificent countryside. We played some really good music, and sometimes it was magic. Erin did not have her baby. (But we were prepared!) We learned the pertinent facts about five states. Go ahead - ask us what the state bird of North Dakota is! We climbed a volcano and a mountain and ate a lot of ice cream. We saw lots of friends and family and three former Strikepointers (who are both friends and family!). We saw Stonehenge. Really. There's one in Washington. Who knew?

- Nancy

Day 10 Pictures

International Test Rose Garden, Portland

(look for Mount Hood in the background!)

Multnomah Falls

The view from the top of the falls!

Tour de force

Strikepoint is now halfway through our whirlwind tour of the Pacific Northwest, enjoying a well-deserved day off! After many hours (and over two thousand miles!) in our newly un-airconditioned bus this last week, we were able to stretch our legs and do some more sightseeing the last few days. We've managed to hike to the top of Multnomah Falls, frolic in the Pacific Ocean, eat our weight in cheese and ice cream at the Tillamook Creamery, visit Stonehenge in the Columbia River Gorge, and drink in the beauty of the International Rose Test Garden in Portland. Whew!

We've also discovered several cool new places to eat and highly recommend: The Pickle Barrel in Bozeman, MT; The Hot Rod Cafe in Post Falls, ID; The Crazy Pepper in Hood River, OR; and the Elephant's Delicatessen in Portland, OR. We also played some highly competitive mini golf in Bismarck, ND.

And we've seen former 'Pointers Monica Belzer and Erik Rau, now both living in Oregon. Former FUMC ringer Ruth Brickell gets the prize for the person who traveled the furthest to a concert - from Thunder Bay, Ontario to Yakima, WA!

So far we are all unscathed - except for the to-be-expected mysterious bruises, of course.

We'll try to keep you posted with more tour updates/highlights/hijinks!
-Elissa and Nancy

Meet Max

Our new trailer has finally arrived! Isn't it beautiful? Packing all the equipment and luggage should be SO much easier than with the old trailer. We'll test that premise after our final rehearsal tomorrow night.

- Nancy